Starship launch: Megarocket to fly for 6th time from SpaceX's Starbase in Texas

SpaceX is preparing its gargantuan Starship rocket for another test flight close on the heels of a historic launch that saw the company nab the booster out of the air for the first time.

Each flight test for the 400-foot behemouth composed of both a rocket and a vehicle has seemingly pushed the spaceship closer and closer to being ready for crewed spaceflight. But the company, headed by founder and CEO Elon Musk, still has a few milestones to hit before it's ready for humans to board it.

The next test of the Starship, the sixth overall, is set to take place as soon as Monday evening – about a month since the last demonstration, SpaceX said.

In the years ahead, the Starship will play a role in NASA moon missions, helping to ferry astronauts back to the lunar surface for the first time in half-a-century.

The Starship is also integral in Musk's grand vision of eventually colonizing Mars. Musk has previously stated his vision of sending the first Starships to Mars in late 2026, the next time that Earth and Mars line up, followed by crewed flights in 2028.

Here's what to know about Starship and its upcoming flight test:

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When will Starship launch on next test flight?

SpaceX said on social media platform X last week that Starship's sixth flight test could launch as soon as Monday, Nov. 18.

The 30-minute launch window will open at 5 p.m. EST, according to SpaceX.

As of Tuesday, preparations for launch were underway at SpaceX's Starbase in Boca Chica near Brownsville, Texas.

After previous tests took place in the morning, this time around, SpaceX is adjusting the flight’s launch window to the late afternoon for "better conditions for visual observations," the company said.

What is the Starship?

SpaceX has spent years developing and testing the Starship, which is classified as a super heavy-lift launch vehicle and is lauded as the biggest and most powerful rocket ever built.

The entire craft features two components: The 165-foot Starship spacecraft itself, and the 232-foot "Super Heavy" rocket it's perched atop. SpaceX envisions the powerful spacecraft being a fully reusable transportation system that can carry both humans and cargo to Earth's orbit, the moon and even Mars.

In its sixth test, the Starship itself is due to fly a similar trajectory over the Gulf of Mexico as in previous flights before landing for the third straight time in the Indian Ocean. As for the rocket booster, SpaceX officials hope to once again successfully steer it back autonomously to the landing pad before catching it with two giant mechanical arms.

This time around, SpaceX plans to reignite its Raptor engine in space to attempt an orbital burn – a maneuver needed for future orbital missions. Upon its descent, SpaceX will fly the ship at a "higher angle of attack" to test what it can handle on future landings.

The company has reportedly made several hardware upgrades ahead of the flight and improved safety features around its booster propulsion systems. The upcoming flight test will also assess new thermal protection.

Audible sonic booms are expected in the area around the landing zone as the returning booster slows down from supersonic speeds, SpaceX said.

Starship selected for NASA lunar missions

The Starship is due to play a vital role in NASA's lunar ambitions amid a heated international space race to get back to the moon. As part of the U.S. space agency's ambitious Artemis campaign, its first lunar program since the Apollo era of the 1970s, NASA is paying SpaceX $4 million to develop a spacecraft capable of safely transporting astronauts from orbit to the moon's surface.

Under NASA's plans, Artemis III astronauts aboard the Orion capsule would rendezvous and dock with Starship while orbiting the moon. Two astronauts would then board the Starship for a ride to the lunar surface while the other two spacefarers remain on Orion.

In the years ahead, NASA's Artemis program aims to establish a lunar settlement on the south pole. One day, the water ice thought to be abundant in the region could be extracted and used for drinking, breathing and as a source of hydrogen and oxygen for rocket fuel to make crewed trips to Mars possible – such as the ones Musk is planning as early as 2028.

Starship's first crewed test flight is planned for the third and final mission under the Polaris Program, which SpaceX is funding along with billionaire entrepreneur Jared Isaacman. The inaugural spaceflight in September under the program, Polaris Dawn, included the first-ever commercial spacewalk with the crew aboard a Dragon capsule.

What happened on previous Starship tests?

Since April 2023, Starship has undergone five test flights.

While the rocket's first three tests ended in explosions, officials say it has improved in every demonstration they've conducted with the vehicle. The explosions came to an end in its fourth and fifth test flights when Starship managed to land successfully in the Indian Ocean in both June and October.

One of the biggest leaps in progress also came in the last flight test when SpaceX mission controllers not only returned the rocket booster to the launch site, but snatched it out of the air with two giant mechanical arms, nicknamed "chopsticks."

Having the capability of catching the Starship booster is crucial for SpaceX, giving the company a completely reusable vehicle that is able to fly again.

Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected]

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: SpaceX Starship to launch new flight test after historic booster catch